1. Nicola Elton
Tel: 07742 039 875 email: nicki.elton@tiscali.co.uk
Profile
Talented and experienced learning and development professional who is highly motivated, self-
sufficient, and a conscientious individual. Being very well adept at managing the full training cycle, I
make sure that learning and development is an integrated part of the overall business strategy; this
means being the ‘voice’ of training at the highest level whilst being able to inspire staff at any level.
As a highly capable organiser and pragmatic problem solver I am accustomed to communicating
and negotiating at all levels.
Deputy Manager, The Perfume Shop Oct ’15 – current
 Implemented sales & product training in flagship store to achieve a 7% annual sales increase
 Reduced shrinkage from over 10% to 0.6% by introducing efficient stock control systems and
housekeeping routines
 Recruited, trained and managed ongoing development & increased product knowledge of all
staff leading to a cumulative customer service score of 94%
Training Manager, London Leisure College Feb ‘08 – Aug ‘14
 Transformed the L & D offering by leading a project team to build and introduce a bespoke
Learner Management System as a ‘one-stop-shop’ for the complete training programme
consisting of over 150 different course types. This was delivered on time and to budget
 Enabled a blended learning, bite-size approach to delivery giving easy access to training to all
staff across the organisation. Training activity and ‘course’ attendance increased whilst
delivering to an annual like-for-like budget
 Provided transparency, consistency, up-to-date training records and accurate report writing on
L & D activity for the first time in company history
 Worked collaboratively with HR business partners and L & D Director to create a clear
leadership pathway by producing a skills map for all leadership & management roles. This saw
an increase in internal recruitment and candidate quality to management roles whilst reducing
the recruitment costs
 Identified a customer service skills gap within the business then designed and delivered a
company-wide level 2 and 3 programme recognised in the IiP company report.
 Recruited, trained, assessed and monitored a pool of ‘Customer Service Champion Trainers’ to
deliver the customer service programme ensuring high quality and standardisation of delivery
across the business. Company customer satisfaction scores increased by 9%
 Liaised with subject matter experts to ensure content and quality of all training especially
compliance training resulting in LLC being recognised as a Centre of Excellence with the
Sector Skills Council
 The ‘go-to person’ for building an Apprenticeship programme and training content in line with
the National Register responsible for 3 different programmes and over 150 apprentices
 Marketed the relevant training events to third party business bringing LLC into profit for the first
time in its 10 year history
 Managed the LLC and tutor teams including recruitment, on-going training, coaching,
appraisals, and quality assurance activities. Staff retention is 87%, the highest in the business.
 Part of the change management team introducing a coaching and mentoring culture at GLL
General Manager Leisure Facilities, GLL Oct ‘05 – Feb ‘08
 Ensured the effective and safe operation of up to 3 leisure centres, concurrently maintaining
and improving staff performance and customer experience
 Managed the centre’s budgets ensuring all department heads were financially responsible for
their own areas of delivery. Consistently delivered to budget

2.  Designed and delivered induction programme for all centre staff.
 Introduced a leisure centre based training programme to meet compliance and developmental
qualifications and training. My centres achieved a 96% compliance score on internal audit
 Introduced a member and staff incentive scheme. Achieved a membership base of 4300+ in
the main centre for the first time in its history by increasing retention, reducing complaint ratio
and increasing membership sales. Increased staff retention to its highest level in 5 years
 Managed the communication and effective reporting with third sector partners
 Responsible for health and safety in all centres
Overseas Regional Training Manager, Thomson & Crystal Holidays Nov ‘00 – Sept ‘05
 Introduced an overseas management development programme to identify managers of the
future and a secure succession plan
 Introduced a Train the Trainer programme to ensure the programme could be delivered to a
consistently high standard across the international business
 Utilised the full training cycle with the internationally dispersed service and sales teams
ensuring engaging and innovative, accelerated learning-based training events were delivered.
Sales and service KPI’s increased consistently year on year
 Co-ordinated the training programme for all staff based overseas in all roles at the start of each
season ensuring all staff were skilled and knowledgeable in their area of responsibility
 Responsible for ongoing and developmental training for all overseas staff
 Designed and delivered induction programmes across the company for over 1300 new recruits
in 15+ different roles
 Designed developmental training material for all overseas staff in line with business objectives
Overseas Area Manager, Thomson Holidays Apr ’94 – Oct ‘00
 Managed, motivated and developed a team of 45 sales and service staff to achieve budget and
high customer feedback scores
 Motivated teams to keep consistently high service levels in areas of high pressure where staff
worked unsocial hours
 Set and monitored all operational targets using key performance indicators leading to a 15%
increase in customer satisfaction results
 Recruited staff in UK and overseas using key skills/competency based interview process
 Negotiated with suppliers to resolve service failure and health and safety issues in order to
provide a safe and seamless experience for customers
 Designated manager of emergencies such as long flight delays, transport strikes, hospital
administrations and police contact for customers
 Designed a profit control system for large overseas operation resulting in a 15% revenue
increase
Qualifications and Training
 Certificate in Training Practice
 Level 5 Award in Management Coaching and Mentoring
 Preparing to Teach in the Lifelong Learning Sector (PTLLS)
 CMI Engagement, Influence & Communication
 GLL Performance Management
Interests
I love to travel, learn about and get involved in the ‘real’ culture of the areas and countries I visit.
This led to my learning conversationally fluent German and conversational Spanish. This love of
travel started young as a member of the England Junior Alpine Ski Racing Team and continued
throughout my career as an Alpine Ski Instructor and with TUI UK. I am fascinated by cooking and
love nothing more than creating tasty and imaginative dishes for friends and family.